Historic Notre Dame Cathedral Fire

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On April 15th, Paris, France lost a major tourist attraction, and lost a piece of its history as well. The Notre Dame Cathedral caught on fire, starting at the roof. Sources say it was “likely accidental.” The roof is made from 1300 different trees, which gave it the nickname, “the forest.” But because of the several different trees the roof is made of, it was easy to catch fire. There was so much dust accumulated in the attic, it also helped the blaze get bigger according to Andrew Tremlett, the Dean of Durham Cathedral in the United Kingdom. He also commented, “That’s where your risk really is.” So was the fire bound to happen?

There were approximately 500 firefighters trying to stop the fire and they succeeded after five long hours. President Trump did tweet, “So horrible to watch the massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Perhaps flying water tankers could be used to put it out. Must act quickly!” Sorry to disappoint President Trump, but dumping gallons of water on top of an ancient building would just lead to more destruction. Not a very good idea because water gets heavy. One gallon of water weighs 8.34 pounds, and that stacks up quickly.

The cathedral is a vital part of Paris, France. It has withstood plagues, nazis, and wars, now it finally comes down with a simple attic fire. The Notre Dame Cathedral was built 850 years ago. It was built during the reign of King Louis vii. King Henry of England was crowned in the cathedral and Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned emperor of France in the cathedral also. Notre Dame Cathedral is the most famous of all the Gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages. The architecture is also one of the first examples of the use of flying buttresses. Inside the cathedral are priceless statues and stained glass windows. All which make this a great spot for tourists to take pictures.

You’d think everyone would be upset about the news, but that is not the case. The internet is not exactly mourning the loss. Considering it is just another religious building, lots of people are furious that others are feeling gloomful. Others are only furious because there are so many religious buildings that have been destroyed, but no one would mourn, but since the Notre Dame Cathedral burned down, people are more depressed about it. Some people don’t think it’s fair, but the history of this building is so much greater than other religious buildings. But they are correct, they still deserve respect when their buildings are destroyed.

The president of France, Emmanuel Macron, told the public, “We will rebuild Notre Dame even more beautiful and I want that to be done in the next five years.” In actuality, the full restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral will take between “10 to 15 years,” according to Frédéric Létoffé, the head of the group of companies for the Restoration of Historic Monuments.

In order for the rebuilding to begin, France needs tons of money. They need to raise between $1.13 billion and $2.3 billion.